In recent years, the County Legislature has worked to utilize new technology to reduce costs for paper and printing. The Legislature, at the urging of Legislator Alex Shannon and Legislator Kathleen Cassidy, started using electronic tablets to reduce paper costs in legislative offices. The savings from the first year of using the electronic tablets topped $10,000, and the savings is expected to continue.

That effort now includes the county Board of Elections, which will be using a specialized printer to print ballots and election materials. The new printer, approved at the July meeting, is expected to save $40,000 annually. That savings will be reflected in a reduced BOE election budget during the 2014 fiscal year. The savings is expected to continue in the coming years.

The savings is thanks to technology and also thanks to the BOE employees who will be handling printing and preparation in-house. The new in-house method means more of a workload for those at the BOE, so our thanks to the commissioners and employees at the board for stepping up and helping create a cost-savings.

The savings also helps reduce the costs to the county for implementing expanded federal regulations for voting and ballot access. The new in-house of printing will be part of the Board of Election’s work during the 2013 elections, and we look forward to the results this fall.